I’m sitting here in the land of chemo side effects, feeling especially thankful for laughter. Can’t get enough of it these days. Web MD, my favorite online health resource, repeatedly lists laughter as a powerful agent in treating all sorts of illnesses. So then it’s official, right?!

The other morning I got a good dose of laughter.  Sarah, my kindergartner, who possesses a silly bone the size Texas, chimed in while eating cinnamon bread, “Mom, did you know that ‘booger’ and ‘booger’ rhyme?”

After further discussion, I figured out that she was trying to say “burger” and “booger”.  The fact they actually do not rhyme is beside the point…we’re working on that. My kids have each had homeschool speech therapy for pronouncing the word “burger.”  Burrrrr-Gurrrrr.  Ok, try again.  Burrr-gurrr, not boog-er.  Burrr-gur. These therapy sessions occur on hamburger nights and when we have drippy noses.  They all have their first cold of the school year, so boogers are on their minds and unfortunately, their sleeves.

But I digress…

During these harder, feeling-really-icky days of fighting the big, bad thief, laughter has truly been medicine for my body and soul. It both invigorates and flows from recognition of the good things in life. God is the giver of those good things. Funny things. Just look at a walrus or platypus; God certainly has a fantastic sense of humor. And as those created in our Heavenly Father’s image, we can laugh because He laughs.

Part of this cancer journey for me has involved growing in the skill of “good-things scavenging”, a.k.a. thanksgiving.  When laughter comes via my kids, Jim Gaffigan, Jen Hatmaker, and my husband Van, giving thanks comes more easily.

On that note, I am thankful for some biggies – the comforting presence of my Heavenly Father, the peace of my Savior that pervades my fearful heart, and the loving embrace of my church, friends, and family. I’m also thankful for little things that, from where I am sitting, make a big difference. They make me smile. Like my eyelashes.

At Van’s insistence, I would like to give my beloved lashes a Standing Ovation by sharing a poem I wrote the other day, entitled Ode to my Lashes. Hope you enjoy…

Ode to my Lashes

Your comrades adorning my head and the rest, abandoned their stations at the start of this test.

Determined you’re clinging with admirable might; Standing firm on my lids for this prolonged fight.

Heavy the pressure you endure from your peers. But you, oh lashes, are my faithful dears.

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Beating the odds and proving your strength, your staying-power is rather impressive in length.

Even the micro-hairs deep in my ears have, along with the nose kind, surrendered, I fear.

Assessing each day what hair remains still, I admire, oh lashes, the strength of your will.

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Applying mascara, I’m exceedingly proud; you’re strong little guys, standing out from the crowd!

Your presence provides a near-normal appearance; grateful am I for your dogged perseverance.

A small but significant help to my sanity. Thank you, oh lashes, for this one gift of vanity.

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Realizing, indeed, a rough road lies ahead, you may, at long last, be forced out and shed.

Even the mightiest can not forever stand, as winds and waves buffet your soft land.

Yet it seems through the tempest you’ll hold on ’til the end. For you, oh lashes, are my loyalest of friends.

“Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied.  Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.”  (Luke 6:21.)

I’m thankful for these heavenly doses of laughter.